Is how they treat their most vulnerable. The young, the sick, the elderly. (Ah, the State would be the guy with the bat… so to speak)

States Slashing Social Programs for Vulnerable

By ERIK ECKHOLM
Published: April 11, 2009

PHOENIX — Battered by the recession and the deepest and most widespread budget deficits in several decades, a large majority of states are slicing into their social safety nets — often crippling preventive efforts that officials say would save money over time.

Barack Obama – in his naive desire to be all-inclusive and oh! so bi-partisan – is ultimately lying down with dogs. And we all know how that turns out. Though was not elected to teach the Right how to play fair and share their toys, but so far this is his new school project. Hope he’s a fast learner as this will spell failure for him and doom for the Republic. The Right has parked the bus in front of the goal (soccer expression) and are hitting hard on the break, with dirty players flying in two footed, studs showing. American politics has evolved in 2009 to a winner take all proposition, and the Right knows this well. America’s success will not do them one bit of good – indeed it could bury them for a long time. A successful Barack would be a threat to become President For Life – by popular demand.

Therefore, the Right has jumped to Plan Z (or somewhere way down there). Which is to say, “Take Barack Down, and America With Him”. There is no choice. A much better, comprehensive thesis (believe it or not) resides below…

Oops! I guess it’s interesting – given this Human Development Index – soon it will be possible to state quantitatively that the US has devolved to third world status. Once the HDI score falls below the first “third world country” on the list you can pop the cork on the champagne. The “third world” tier seems to start at #26 (Slovenia), with our good friends the UK are rapidly trying to beat us to the party, being at #21.

But no one needs to tell those in Kings County, CA, for example, what the score is. They already know.

TENT CITIES Through the years one end-product of American economic growth has been the Tent Cities in various parts of the world. Tent Cities as refugee camps, as the American juggernaut steamrolled into their lives in the form of adventurous military incursions – directly, or by proxy – or more commonly thru the Economic Terror On Third World Peoples otherwise known as Free Trade, Economic Liberalization, and Globalization.

Now the worm has turned; recognizing the good eatin’ is actually 180 degrees the other way. As multinational banks, insurance companies, and other financial entities hold out their golden chalices for liquid sustenance to wash down the feast of toxic derivatives thus digested, the denizens of the homeland are growing arm and leg weary from the toil of bailouts, the toil of more work for less wages, and the debilitating thirst from lack of liquid. Ity.

Alas, now comes the time to shed those gated enclaves and cul-de-sacs, vaulted foyers, ceramic tiles, and bonus rooms. Now comes the time for a domicile that promises to only increase in value, assuming a re-calibration of perspectives and priorities. Now comes the time to understand what it means to live in the tent cities of Jordan, Iraq, Lebanon, Soweto, Mexico. And oh, Southeast Asia. Now comes the time for life as a pilgrim or worse, until the realization of “who’s not your daddy anymore?” becomes as clear as a desert revelation.

The real idols of the American Dream have taken their booty and run. They are leaving behind a Reality Show – American Nightfall. Coming soon to an empty lot near you. photos – MSNBC

I found that particularly biting. And cruel. And funny. Wish I’d thought of it. Yes, one cannot be sure whether Obama’s plan is going to have it’s intended effects or not (probably won’t) but one things undeniable – it’s going to cause the national debt to just soar to such dangerous levels. The Author below makes a great case for this, and clearly and concisely addresses the crucial elements of the US Economy. The reading is not for the faint hearted. Unless of course you’re of the good-hearted variety (like me) that is waiting with baited breath for the day when The USA can no longer AFFORD TO drop bombs on rural areas from robot planes (drones) that may or may not have men defending their villages and way of life (otherwise known as “militants” in US-speak), killing 2-3 of these men, along with 15 women and children in the process. After all, no one from that part of the world was ever shown to have been involved in 9/11 as requested anyway – contrary to American group think. If the collapse of the US economy helps bring those human rights violations to an end (and many dozens of others currently happening as we speak) then it should be a good thing for the other 96%, eh? Read Article here…

The Perfect Storm: Financial Crisis of Epic Proportions

As “a chain being as strong as it’s weakest link” suggests, the economic unraveling of America’s small towns portends an insidious fate awaiting the larger metropolitan areas. And perhaps with consequences not keeping in scale with the ratio of large city populations to small. Crime, education abandonment, and other social malaise is dampened somewhat by small-town values and social homogeneity. As the economic downturn rears its head further in the larger urban areas, the social adversities will exacerbate workplace and business woes like a perverse multiplier. – NTW Editor.

“When Barack Obama traveled to Elkhart, Indiana, to push his $800 billion economic recovery package two weeks ago, he made the former “RV capital of the world” a poster-child for the current economic crisis. Over the last year, as the British paper The Independent reported, “Practically the entire [recreational vehicle] industry has disappeared,” leaving thousands of RV workers in Elkhart and the surrounding area out of work…”